PROJECT BOAT RESTORATION Launch day at last

Maximus is afloat and Ali Wood's family spend a summer exploring

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Chichester's Dell Quay boatyard had been Maximus's home for two years - and felt like our second home too, since we'd acquired the Maxi 84 project boat.

We'd spent long hot days scraping paint, fixing leaks, and shadowing experts as they talked us through seacocks and engines, and how we must - absolutely must - reinforce that bendy forepeak hatch (which we still haven't done).

There were many jobs left on the list, from fitting a bow-roller to replacing the running rigging, but we were out of time.

Our three kids were now on their summer holidays and a long-awaited home-exchange in Chichester (from where we'd planned to do more boat work) had fallen through.

"Shall we just launch and be done with it?" I asked my husband James. "At least then we can have a holiday in the marina."

The electrics were only partially finished, but the engine had been serviced and Adam, our electrician, had fitted a temporary starter battery to get us the 20-minute passage from Dell Quay to Chichester Marina, where he was happy to continue the work.

For our fin keel yacht it was only possible to launch at the top of spring tide, so we checked the dates. With a week to spare we decided to go for it. James camped in the boatyard for the last couple of days, applying the remaining coats of antifouling, while I made hasty arrangements to lift-out and get some last minute jobs done.

Matthew at Premier's Chichester Marina was very helpful and talked me through the marina lock.

"Don't forget you need a handheld VHF to call the lock-keeper," he reminded me, prompting a closing-time dash to Force 4.

Despite being busy, Andy at Dell Quay Marine kindly fitted the remaining Trudesign seacock, and checked that all seacocks were all closed ready for Maximus to be driven in cradle down the slipway, and tied alongside the pontoon.